The Northwoods had an excellent showing during the Professional Musky Tournament Trail (PMTT) 2026 Recon Boats World Championship held at Lake of the Woods in Minnesota earlier this month.

Peter Blicharz of Three Lakes and his partner, Jarod Donar of Mount Horeb, captured first place netting nine muskies over 40 inches and taking home a $58,000 grand prize.

The pair earned a total of 728 points over the three-day tournament on Lake of the Woods, securing a championship package that includes a Recon 2085T boat and trailer — and finishing second in the PMTT Top Gun Team of the Year standings.

Blicharz’s victory capped off a dominant showing for the Northwoods, with a number of local fishermen placing in the top 10, as well as hauling in the tournament’s largest muskie.

Dan Wojtusik of Eagle River, who placed eighth and landed the tournament’s biggest fish at 52 inches, said having so many local anglers on the national leaderboard reflects the “Muskie Capital of the World’s” rich fishing ground.

“Anglers from this area grow up in a really diverse fishery — dark water, clear water, rivers, the Chain of Lakes,” Wojtusik said. “When we go anywhere, it’s familiar to us. That’s the difference. Tournament fishermen from Wisconsin are always dominant.”

He added that growing up around local competitive anglers builds a distinct edge. “There are good anglers, and good competitive anglers. There is a difference,” he said.

First-time lake

Experiencing Lake of the Woods for the first time was a breathtaking experience for Blicharz and others fishing the waterbody. The massive expanse of blue occupies parts of the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Manitoba, as well as the state of Minnesota. It’s more than 70 miles long and wide, containing more than 14,552 islands and 65,000 miles of shoreline.

“There is no comparison in lake size to anything here,” Blicharz said.

What made Blicharz and Donar’s victory remarkable was that neither had ever fished Lake of the Woods prior to the event.

“The craziest part of this tournament was we had never been there before,” Blicharz said, noting they had only three or four days of prefishing to decode the massive waterbody. “We figured things out the last day of prefishing,” he said.

According to a tournament recap by Josh Borovsky of Musky Insider, the pair succeeded by staying mobile and aggressive: “Rather than abandoning their program when fishing became difficult, Donar and Blicharz trusted what they had learned and continued running fresh water, often covering 20 to 30 miles per day.”

Their largest catch was a 48-incher boated on day two. For Blicharz and Donar — both of whom have two children under age 5 — the cash prize comes at a great time. “As young families, this definitely helps out financially,” he said.

This is Blicharz’s second PMTT World Championship win. He previously won the title alongside his father, Chris Blicharz of Three Lakes. The elder Blicharz also put on a strong showing this year, taking 10th place with Peter’s brother-in-law, Tony Sigl.

Wallis, Lijewski take third

Ryan Wallis of Eagle River and his longtime fishing partner Mark Lijewski of Hazelhurst took third place overall with nine muskies totaling 713 points.

Ahead of the competition, they spent some days prefishing the area, learning where the fish were biting while also battling 4- to 5-foot waves on Lake of the Woods.

Wallis explained that fish biting is very weather- and water-dependent, but once you figure out what the fish are doing and why they are doing it, that helps narrow down what types of zones the fish will be found in.

The strategy worked, yielding a respectable showing with top fish measuring 47.75, 47.5 and 47 inches.

Wallis noted that losing three muskies on the final day likely kept them from taking the top spot as world champions. “We knew where they were, we just lost the bites,” he said.

Trophy 52-incher

Wojtusik and his partner, Jason Summers of Minnesota, finished eighth overall while claiming the tournament’s biggest fish award with a 52-inch muskie landed on day two.

The achievement follows a record-setting performance in August, where Wojtusik and Summers boated 16 muskies in two days at the PMTT qualifier on Iowa’s Okoboji and Spirit Lakes.

Wojtusik praised the wilderness setting of Lake of the Woods, noting he saw numerous bears swimming between islands, and also caught sight of many other wildlife species such as otters and beavers during the competition.

“Regardless of the fishing, the experience of being there was absolutely incredible,” Wojtusik said. “And congratulations to Peter and Jarod. It is very cool what they accomplished.”

In total, the 2026 PMTT field caught and released 117 muskies over three days, including 10 fish over 50 inches. For full results, visit promusky.com.